Hold the Line

6 My soul has dwelt too long With one who hates peace.

One day I was sitting in a local restaraunt eating lunch with some co-workers. I was having a grilled ham and cheese sandwhich, and a pile of yummy fries. I had reached for my glass of tea and taken a drink and sat it down. It was then I turned my head to look around that I saw the television. There was an ESPN kickboxing match going on. My heart leapt a little bit with excitement as I turned my chair so I could watch with pleasure while eating my lunch.

I watched one guy throw a lightning jab, cross, jab combo. He then finished it off with a brutal shin kick across his opponent’s outer thigh. I nodded with great satisfaction at the fighter’s ability. His frame was well trained and muscular. He didn’t have an arrogant look to him either, which I appreciated. He was a man who had trained long and hard, he had a heart full of strength to get into the ring, and he had the look in his eyes that I have seen so many times. A look of unwielding iron that will not bend.

Over the years, I can always see the turning point in a fight. The real fight isn’t physical. The real fight is mental and in the heart. I have seen it hundreds of times. When a man breaks in his heart is when the fight is over. After that the physical aspects of a fighter goes with it. It is interesting to see people break as soon as they get into the ring before the fight begins, and it is interesting to see those who do not break. A good fighter trains his mind to focus and continue fighting no matter what. It is the wise fighter who clads his heart with armor, fires it in the furnace, pounds on it with the blacksmith’s hammer, and cools it in icy water to harden it into shape.

So I was sitting there watching this kickboxing match about to take another bite of my sandwhich, when the Lord smote me. It was not a physical blow, but it was a moment where He lifted me out of myself and looked deep into my eyes. His word to me, “The LORD tests the righteous, But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates” (Psalm 11:5).

God hates violence and those who love it! I sat there dumbfounded for a few minutes thinking about that, and it was then I decided to turn my chair back away from the tele and eat my lunch. God hates violence, and I had to repent of my sin.

Sitting here writing this my mind flashes back over the last thirty something years of my life. I remember when I was a little boy and how violence upset me. Brutal cruel violence still bothers me, and I have never been able to watch Friday the 13th type of violence. But, I grew up watching Rocky, Rambo, Red Dawn, Predator, Aliens, and many, many other films and shows. Some of my favorite parts in Star Wars are the space battles. In Star Trek when the captain gives the order to “fire” and the phasers and photon torpedoes shoot and launch into space it always gives me a thrill. I loved the violence in video games. Doom 2 was one of my favorites growing up. I remember when Braveheart came out, during the battle scenes I was on the edge of my seat, and I remember cheering when the Scots were cutting down the British. When William Wallace finished the battle with a roar and drove his claymore into the ground in triumph I was jumping up and down inside. I slightly remember no one else cheering in the theater, and my friends all looking at me with a strange look on their faces. (Here is a link to a humorous look at the ending of Braveheart and the way it should have ended)

So I realized that I was a lover of violence. God smote my heart, and I have had to ask Him for forgiveness. It is hard to separate myself from violence because it is so prevalent, and I do my best not to take pleasure in it. Yes I see violence everyday, but I see it differently now. I see it as a fact of life, a way that the wickedness of man has wrought upon us. And I see God looking down with fire in His eyes with hatred for our violence. That last image is very unsettling.

God’s displeasure with the violence of humanity goes back to the very beginning. When Cain slew Abel, God’s wrath was kindled toward Cain because Abel’s blood cried up to God from the ground. Violence and murder entered into the life of humanity from that point on.

In Genesis 6:11-12 we read, “The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.”

Jesus said in Luke 17:26, “And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man.” People were going about there daily lives when Noah and his family entered the ark, but I can’t help but feel there is something deeper to this as well. The days of Noah included that the thoughts and intentions of men’s hearts were only on evil continually (Gen 6:6) and the earth was filled with violence. In verse 7 of that chapter, it says that God determined that He would destroy them and He was sorry He had made us. Thankfully God chose Noah to carry on the race or we wouldn’t be here.

We need to repent of our love of violence, and turn toward the path of peace. That is what God desires for us. The people of God are to love what God loves and hate what God hates. God hates violence, and He loves peace. We should hate violence and love peace. I don’t know how things could ever change in this world, but God will change our hearts just as He changed mine.

The mark of the people of God is for us to love peace and always do our best to avoid violence. Violence should always be the last resort, just as it is God’s last resort. We should always seek a peaceful solution to problems, avoid violence, and probably should do our best to avoid exposing ourselves to violence even though it is so difficult to do so in our culture. Jesus describes His people during the sermon on the mount. He says of us, “Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy… Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:7,9).

Lord, change us and let us be a people of peace.

174a, “I long for Your salvation, O LORD”

What is the greatest desire of those who call on the name of the Lord? I think this statement sums it up. The object of the writer’s longing is God’s salvation. As this was written prior to Christ, we can see the yearning, the trust in God looking forward to the day when He would provide that salvation. The Lord’s salvation was embodied in Jesus Christ. It was brought about soley by the plan of God, and the work of God in Jesus.

Isaiah writes, “I looked, but there was no one to help, And I wondered That there was no one to uphold; Therefore My own arm brought salvation for Me” (63:5a,b).

No one other than God provides salvation, and it is only by the work of the Lord that it was brought about in due time. This section of Isaiah mirrors Revelation 19 in its picture of Jesus. I believe the arm of the Lord here is representative of Christ. He brought about salvation, as well as being the one who brings God’s judgments. The dual ministry of Jesus as the Lamb of God and the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.

The writer of the Psalm is looking forward to his salvation. They could only wonder about God’s plan in bringing it. They didn’t know the specifics, but they believed that it would be completed. God in His grace promised it to them, pointed out that He was the focus of their salvation, and revealed to them His plan slowly but clearly in His communications with the prophets. When it was time, God clearly revealed His salvation in Jesus Christ.

Joseph, the chosen earthly father for Jesus, was having difficulty when he first found out Mary was pregnant before their mariage. But the angel of the Lord spoke to Him and reassured him that everything would be good. The angel said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.’ “

Those before Christ and many during His time on the earth yearned for God’s salvation. They sought after it, and ultimately God fulfilled His promises in Jesus. We look back to that work and trust in God just as they did for our salvation. So the question I posed at the beginning, what is the greatest desire of your heart?

I can’t speak for anyone else of course. I don’t know and cannot see into the hearts of other men. So all I can do is speak about what is in my heart. My greatest desire in life is for God’s salvation. That salvation is in Christ and is Christ. He is the focus of all our hopes and yearnings. There are not enough words or words adequate enough to express the greatness of the yearning in my heart for Him.

I want more of Jesus than I have now in this life. I want to see His beautiful face. I want to see the marks in His hands and feet and weep over them. I want to hear His voice. I want to hear that voice singing over me.

Zephaniah 3:17, “The LORD your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.

To hear the voice of the one who spoke the universe into existence, the voice that can thunder and sounds like the roar of many waters, the voice that can silence the angry voices of the wicked, the voice that calls to His people, the voice that cried out on the cross will sing over us. And it will not be a song of mourning, it will be Jesus rejoicing over us. The one who loves us, paid our unpayable debt, who poured Himself out, allowed Himself to be abused, insulted, blasphemed, scourged, and nailed to a cross to die one of the worst deaths imaginable. It will be Him who raises His voice over us.

I want to feel His arms around me, I want to kneel at His feet and worship Him forever. I want to serve Him every day for all of my existence. He is the King and Lord over all of Humanity. And I am thankful, that even though there are people who abuse His name even today, and there are people who do not believe in Him, and there are those who fight against His truth and do their best to suppress it and keep people from believing, that when the word “savior” is mentioned even the unbelievers think of Christ. They may not follow Him, but the word “savior” will forever bring Jesus to mind when it is spoken. There is no other person on earth that people think of when they hear that word. Jesus is glorified even among those who do not believe in Him.

I yearn for the salvation of God. I am so glad, and I am filled with joy thinking about it. I know and trust that I will be with Him forever. Those before Jesus looked forward to Him. We look back to what He did for us. And like them, we look forward to the future. If we die we will be with Him, but there will be a generation of people who will see His second coming when His salvation is fulfilled for those who love Him and are looking for His coming. There is a time coming when we will be perfected wholly and completely. The power of Christ will fill us and change our bodies to be like His. The weakness of our flesh, the sin that lurks there will be destroyed. We will be born in strength, filled with the unlimited power of God, and unable to commit sin. What a glorious day that will be, when we are changed to be like Him.

Glory to His blessed name.

v162, “I rejoice at Your word As one who finds great treasure.” v167, “My soul keeps Your testimonies, And I love them exceedingly.”

The Word of God is like a great treasure chest. It is the greatest treasure chest to ever exist. If a man were to take all the gold, silver, and priceless gems in the world and pile them up into the biggest treasure chest constructed, the Word of God would still be greater. All the wealth of the world is worthless rubbish when compared to God’s Truth. If I was given a choice between the two, I’d take my Bible and leave the gold piled up where it sat to rust away.

Every word, every sentence from the smallest to the longest is precious and priceless. No material wealth in the world can even be compared to it. The Holy Spirit opens the eyes of those who love Him to see into the mind of God through it, and we find life through it in Jesus Christ. A very interesting point too is that Jesus Christ is the Word of God.

John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

I love God’s Word, and I make every effort to seek out the truth in it’s pages. Truth and knowing the God of truth is more important to me than traditional dogma, what I have been taught growing up, or what I want to believe about God. I am here to be pleasing to God, believe, and teach the truth, not to be pleasing to men, confirm error, or continue contradiction.

It is amazing what men will do for treasure, and it is amazing how some treat God’s Word. It sits on the shelf and collects dust, while people are out working themselves to death to earn treasure. They treat God’s Word with contempt and don’t realize that in its pages is the greatest treasure to ever exist. That treasure is focused on Jesus. Some will do anything for treasure, but the real treasure is ignored and abandoned. It is one of the greatest tragedies of humanity.

Inside the church (and I’m speaking generally here), I have simply been dumbfounded with some people and how they treat God’s Word. They only want to study certain parts that they like. They never teach parts that are offensive to them, or they try to explain the parts they don’t like away. Some suppress the truth of God’s Word because it does not line up with what they believe. And then you have some in the church who do not even believe God’s Word is what it claims to be. They dismiss it as the writing of people centuries ago who were backward and ignorant. It is shameful.

Traditional dogma, what I have been taught growing up, or what I want to believe about God is irrelevant in light of God’s revelation of Himself to mankind. It is my obligation, and my priority to believe what God has revealed about Himself despite what anyone else thinks. That is the reason I have come into conflict at my last two churches that I was a member. And it is the reason I am an un-ordained pastor. I wear that as a badge of honor because it is for believing God’s Word over men that I am excluded.

So let it be, My Lord and King.

v158, “I see the treacherous, and am disgusted, Because they do not keep Your word.”

For anyone who truly loves God, the Psalmist makes a very important point in regard to how we should see sin. Not keeping God’s Word and sinning against Him should be disgusting to Christians. When we sin against God we are acting the same as those who never keep His Word. That is one reason we should endeavor with all our will and strength to live pure and pleasing lives before the Lord. And we are not to judge unbelievers. How can the disgusting judge the disgusting? God is the judge, and He will judge the disgusting hearts of men.

I think the word “disgusted” is a good label to put on the state of the sinfulness in this world. The wickedness of man across the planet has reached a terrible level. I could recount the terrible things going on everyday in every nation on earth, but I don’t have the time to do so. I want to focus on a different aspect to it. Men have always been evil, but when evil is accepted by the culture we begin to have a real problem. A good example is the judges in California who legalized Homosexual marriage. Governor Arnold will uphold the court’s decision even though he vetoed the legislation (news story).

Homosexuality is a sin just like any other, and I would not say it is any worse than fornication, adultery, or vulgar speech. But it is a sin none-the-less. I do not care what other people do, and I don’t care what kind of relationships they have. The one thing I do care about is what God thinks. A part of the Homosexual agenda is to make everyone believe that it is a normal way of life. It is sin in God’s eyes, and I will never think it is an appropriate life choice. I do not want my children to be taught it is normal. And it is said that those of us who think it is wrong are homophobic, evil bigots. I guess they can label us whatever they want. It is an abomination in God’s eyes. For a culture to call what God says is evil, good, is a very dangerous place to be. It prepares a people for the judgment of God.

Isaiah 5:20, “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”

2 Timothy 3:1-4 , “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.“

v145a, “I cry out with my whole heart; Hear me, O LORD!”

I believe this is the only way God will hear us. God wants us to love Him with all of our heart, all of our soul, all of our mind, and all of our strength (Mark 12:30). The only genuine prayer that can be uttered is with a whole heart. The depth of the writers emotion is apparent here. He is crying out fully to God with no reservation. When we come before Him any moment of the day, we should cry out with everything we are. It is those who seek Him with their whole heart who find Him (Deut 4:29; Prov 8:27; Jeremiah 29:13). Anytime we pray, we are not just saying words or going through a routine. When we seek God, especially in prayer, the words we say, the intention of our hearts, and the thoughts of our minds must having meaning and carry our utter dependence on Him. The promise God makes as in Jeremiah 29:13, is when we seek Him in that fashion, we will find Him.

Let it never be said of us as Jesus spoke about the religious leaders of the day “This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me.”

We are to be people who cry out to God with our whole hearts in prayer, lift up our hands and worship Him with our whole hearts, and we should be His servants with our whole hearts. Anything that interferes with that purpose should be laid aside.

“Righteous are You, O LORD, And upright are Your judgments.”

One thing that we can never forget is that God is right in everything that He does. Every decision God makes is right. Every action that God performs is right. Every plan of God is right. He is perfectly pure and holy in all things. He is so far above us, separate, and different than us. His thoughts are above ours, and His ways are different that ours.

Recently we had the massive typhoon disaster and terrible earthquake in the far east that has killed thousands of people. We’ve seen tornadoes and terrible storms in our country as well. People have lost their lives. Many people look to the Lord and want to ask Him why. Only God can answer that question ultimately, but I know God was not caught by surprise when these disasters happened.

I believe that God is in complete control of everything that happens on this earth and in the universe, and God allowed these things to happen. It is His will for these things to happen. It may be judgement, those lives may be required of the Lord and their time is over, it may be God is sending a message that He is displeased with the nations. Only He knows for sure. Whatever the reason may be, everything He does is right and according to His will. We have to submit to His will and recognize that He is right in all things. Even when it comes to suffering.

Isa 45:7-9, “That they may know from the rising of the sun to its setting That there is none besides Me. I am the LORD, and there is no other; I form the light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity; I, the LORD, do all these things.’”

Psalm 115:3, “But our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases.”

Jesus said in Matthew 10:29, “Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will.”

If even sparrows cannot fall to the ground outside of God’s will, nothing else can happen on this earth outside of His will. We as human beings have a difficult time with the concept of God’s sovereingty. Many don’t like to accept that there someone who is in complete control, especially when God does things contrary to their opinion or understanding.

The example of Job is very important to understand. In Job 1:8 we read, “Then the LORD said to Satan, ‘Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?’ ” It is interesting to notice that God pointed out Job. It wasn’t Satan who went after him first. After all the sufferings of Job had taken place, and Job wants to question God about the things that had happened, God’s response to Him in Job 38:4 says, “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding.” Ultimately, we do not know the mind of God, nor His infinite wisdom, His ways, His purpose, or His design. It is not our place to question Him or His purposes. We are the created, He is the creator and can do as He pleases. And He is right to do so.

As a Christian, I came to a point where I was confronted with this truth. Once I accepted it, submitted to God’s control and power (not that I was ever outside of it), and stood in awe and wonder at His great decisions, I felt like I crossed into a new spiritual understanding. God is glorified even in disaster. God is glorified even in the suffering we endure during this life time. We learn obedience, trust, and patience, and God is revealed in His omnipotence. Praise to His name, for He is right in all His ways.

The difference between darkness and light is simple. Darkness is the absence of light. Darkness is simply a result or effect, not a cause. Light is a cause and the result of that: there is no darkness.

“The Day the Trees Fell” last November introduced me to utter darkness in our area. The power was gone for a number of days, and when the sun went down there was nothing. The darkness was like someone poured a vial of black ink over the world. I don’t believe I have ever been exposed to utter darkness before, and for me it felt very oppresive. There were times during that event that I clung to my flash light, lantern, or the head lights of my vehicle.

The Psalmst says that the entrance of God’s Word gives light. The heart of man and all its intent is utter darkness separate from God. Why? God is the source of all light and without Him you have complete darkness (spiritually, emotionally, morally, physicaly etc). When men rejected God, when they suppressed His truth (Rom 1:18) the result was darkness.

Rom 1:21-22a”For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools.”

Men blinded their own hearts even though God had revealed Himself to them from the very beginning. Adam and Eve carried the knowledge of God. Noah and his family carried that knowledge with them out of the ark. God has always had someone in every generation who carried His light. It was man who suppressed the truth and brought spiritual darkness down on themselves. Even to the point today where there are people around the world isolated in jungles and remote places without the knowledge of God. And the fault does not lie with God, it lies with men. Every single human being that has lived and is living is without excuse before God because He has made the knowledge of Himself known through creation and from the very beginning (Rom 1:19-20). He has written His existence onto the conscience of our heart (Rom 2:15).

So what does God have to do? His Word, His self revelation, enters into the world and gives light! And as the Psalmist writes it gives understanding to the simple.

2 Cor 4:6″For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

The truth of God’s initiation of salvation is Him shining the light of the Gospel of Christ into our hearts. The cause of our life is His light. The result of His light in our hearts is life.

“In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, ‘I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him'” (Luke 10:21-22).

The Psalmist writes in v131, “I opened my mouth and panted, for I longed for Your commandments.” And again in v135, “Make Your face shine upon Your servant, And teach me Your statutes.” Again we have this light shining down on His servant. And the light comes from God’s face. So His Word is light, and He is light. When He looks on His servant that light bathes Him in its glory. And the mark of one who truly loves God is a consuming thirst for His Word (light).

Shine your light upon me oh Lord, and fill me with your light just as I am consumed with thirst for life giving water.

And Jesus answers His servants across time and from His thone at the right hand of the father:
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled” (Matthew 5:6). The promise of the Lord is that we will be satisfied, He gives us the life giving water to drink. He is the water, He is the life.

I hear and feel the same way as the Psalmist writes in v134 and v136. Redeem me from the oppression of man to keep your precepts, and rivers of water run down from my eyes for men do not keep your law.

I am so thankful that I live in a country where we can openly and without oppression worship and live out our Faith. Pray for our brothers and sisters in the the world who are oppressed and hindered in their practice of God’s precepts from day to day.

2 Peter 2:7-8[God] delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)

Those who love God and love His truth will experience these feelings. I grieve over the wickedness going on in the world. I worked for a police department for a couple of years while I attended college as a 911 operator. That was one small suburb in one area, in one state of this nation and the amount of evil occuring each night was staggering.

One final thought on the entrance of God’s Word gives light is in reference to Christ’s second coming.

In Revelation 16:10-11, John writes concerning the fourth bowl of judgement poured out on the earth, “Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues because of the pain. They blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and did not repent of their deeds.”

At the time of Christ’s return the earth will be smouldering with destruction from wars and God’s judgment on the evil of men. The sun will be black. The scene will reflect the darkness of men’s hearts. The anti-christ and his armies will be gathered together in Israel to fight against Christ.

And we read these texts, “For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be” (Matthew 24:27).

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:29-30).

“Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean,followed Him on white horses. Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 16 And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.”

Amen, come Lord Jesus.

v123 My eyes fail from seeking Your salvation and Your righteous word.

It is so true that we can fail to seek God’s salvation and righteous Word for our lives. Our love burns so hot and bright for Him, yet at times we seem to have that fire grow low. We have fires outdoors at my house from time to time, and I’ll throw a lot of wood on. Which, causes the fire to blaze, but after a while the fire consumes the wood and the need will arise to throw more wood on.

I think sometimes it has to do with familiarity or routine. We do the same things over and over and we begin to get callous. Like putting scriptures around the house where I can see them. For awhile they make an impact. Then the time comes when I don’t even see them anymore.

I take care of 2 different sites in my job, and there was a lady that worked at one site for a long time that I knew. She is a Pastor’s wife here locally. Then she left and went to another school for a long time. Then she came to my other site. For a while we would exchange good mornings enthusiastically. Then after a while we’d wave or say hi. Just the other day I saw her when I stepped outside my office. And we didn’t say anything at all. Time and routine has that effect.

So when it comes to looking to God’s salvation and righteous Word, there comes a time when we get used to it and the fires burn low.

Jesus said to the church at Laodicea in Rev 3 that they were lukewarm. And the result would be rejection. And in Rev 2 Jesus tells the Ephesians they have lost their first love. Jesus’ correction said to them in verse 4, “Repent and do the things you did at first.”

So throw more wood on the fire, change your routine, change the way you do things, change the scriptures to new ones, but above all else LOVE Jesus with undieing passion and fervent devotion. Seek Him, His salvation, and His truth. Don’t let yourself grow cold or even lukewarm. Call a brother and tell him to start loving Jesus!

“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Heb 10:23-25)

“Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you” (2 Pet 1:13)